Is the jurisprudential rule that certainty overrides certainty, and not that doubt overrides certainty, and that the default status of things is purity until proven otherwise, and that obsessive whispering must be abandoned?
Among the juristic maxims are: "Certainty is not removed by doubt," and "The default state of things is purity." Therefore, whoever has performed ablution (wudu') remains in a state of ablution until he is certain that his ablution has been invalidated; doubt is not taken into account. And whoever doubts whether he performed ablution for his prayer, must perform ablution. And whoever doubts the emission of an impurity or the defilement of his pure clothes, should not pay attention to the doubt until it is confirmed. It is obligatory to shun obsessive whispering (waswasah) and its cure is to disregard it.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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